In life and in music, Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine pulls no punches. He’s got an edge and his guitars do, too. And we mean that literally.
Be it his Rich Biches, Destroyers or various V’s, Mustaine sure does have a thing for (again, literally) edgy guitars. It wasn’t always that way, though.
Mustaine started with a plain old Les Paul. How very un-metal of him! To be more specific, his first “professional” guitar was a Les Paul copy, which didn’t last long.
But things come full circle. As Mustaine embarks on Megadeth’s final victory lap, he’s partnered with Gibson to drop a signature (and very metal-leaning) Les Paul. But this time, it’s not a Chibson. No, it’s a real-deal, dyed-in-the-wool Gibson.
But how about his other notable guitars? For that, we’ll have to take a journey back to the early ’80s…
B.C. Rich Bich
MegaDave could be seen playing his beloved Rich Bich as far back as his days with Panic, Metallica and the early hours of Megadeth. He would have acquired it around 1980, though it’s not 100 percent clear where he picked it up.
What we do know is that the Bich was probably Mustaine’s first proper metal guitar. What’s more, it’s the guitar that Slayer’s Kerry King saw Mustaine rip it up on, leading to him accepting the offer to join Megadeth… for around three weeks.
As for specs, well… it was a Rich Bich. It featured 10 strings, though Mustaine didn’t mess with the extra four. It had a natural finish, which was later re-finished to black, a neck-through body design, two white uncovered Seymour Duncan humbuckers, and a fixed bridge. This guitar, along with a second Rich Bich, was Mustaine’s main guitar until he switched to Jackson Vs in 1986.
Ibanez Destroyer II D400
Mustaine had a thing for the B.C. Rich Bich early on. But that didn’t stop him from venturing out, mainly by way of another very pointy and decidedly metal-looking guitar – an Ibanez Destroyer II D400. Mustaine came upon the guitar around the time he joined Metallica in 1981.
The word is that Mustaine became aware of the shape – like many metal players of the time – because Gibson had sued Ibanez over the Destroyer looking too much like its Explorer model. And again, this was not a novel idea, as everyone from Eddie Van Halen to Adrian Smith played a Destroyer, so Mustaine was probably just trying to get in on the fun.
This guitar was not one of Mustaine’s main guitars per se, but was a notable understudy to his two Rich Bich’s. The guitar itself was quite a beauty, with its sunburst finish over a maple top and mahogany body. The neck was maple, featuring dot inlays, and the pups were a nasty duo: an Ibanez V2 in the bridge, and an Ibanez Super 58 humbucker in the neck.
It’s unclear what became of it, but Mustaine used it through the end of his Metallica days and the early Megadeth years. Beyond that, it might have been used on some early Megadeth recordings, but that’s unverified. Like the Rich Bich’s, Mustaine’s Destroyer went the way of the wind when he switched to Jackson V’s in ’86.
Jackson King V
After Megadeth got a head of steam behind it, Mustaine needed a guitar so pointy that he could skewer his enemies. The obvious choice was a V. But not just any V, a Jackson King V. In fact, Mustaine had several: a white one with decals on the horns, a black King V Custom, and a silver one, dubbed “Number One.”
The white V is believed to be Mustaine’s first Jackson post-endorsement. He went with a single humbucking pickup layout, a Kahler 2300 Tremolo bridge, and the word is that he had the neck sanded down, as he preferred a slimmer neck profile than provided by Jackson.
This also kept the new lacquer from sticking to the shredder’s hands during sweaty live shows. Mustaine played this guitar from 1986 through ’89, and it’s featured in the No More Mr. Nice Guy music video.
Around the same time, Mustaine obtained a 1986 King V Custom. This was said to be a “prototype” based on his needs as far as looks and playability. The guitar featured a Kahler fixed bridge and a two-pickup setup, with a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge and a Bill Lawrence 500L in the neck. This time, the neck profile was thin from the factory to go along with 24 frets.
Also of note is a JE-1200 active mid-boost circuit and a Megadeth logo imprinted on the body. Mustaine liked this guitar, as he used it consistently between 1986 and 1992, before letting it go after the success of the Dave Mustaine Signature Series King V, many of which looked just like this one.
This leads us to Mustaine’s silver King V, aka “Number One”. Mustaine has said many times that this was his “main guitar,” and it’s on almost every classic Megadeth record, beginning with Peace Sells… But Who’s Buying?.
This must have come down to looks, or the so-called “it factor,” because aside from its silver sparkle finish, the only difference between this guitar and his black King V was the Seymour Duncan Jazz pickup in the neck position.
Dean VMNT
Aside from a brief detour with ESP, Mustaine mostly stuck with his Jacksons until the mid-2000s when he became a Dean endorsee. This arrangement began with the Dean VMNT, which debuted at the NAMM Show on January 19, 2007. It’s a nice guitar – and led to other Deans like the Zero, and Doubleneck – but it’s essentially the same spec as his long-running King V guitars.
We say “basically,” because there are some differences. The main thing that separates the VMNT from the King V is the pickups. To this point, Mustaine had been all-in on Seymour Duncan's, but things changed when he switched to Dean, as he developed a signature set of pups called Live Wire pickups.
Not surprisingly, the Live Wire pickups had the same resonance and overall tone as the SH-4 JB humbucker (bridge) and SH-2M Jazz humbuckers (neck) that Mustaine had been using. But the Live Wire pickups had a built-in 9-volt-powered preamp that allowed even more soul-crushing gain and heavier, higher output.
The theory was that the VMNT was a hot-rodded King V, and maybe it was. But it’s up to the listener to decide. The VMNT consistently consisted of a mahogany body and 24-fret neck, and had a Tune-O-Matic bridge and Mino Grover tuners.
Gibson Flying V EXP
According to Mustaine, his lifelong dream was to be a Gibson endorsee.
He was willing to forgo years of collaboration Jackson, ESP, and Dean, all for the chance to trade over hallowed Gibson ground. Luckily for Dave, Gibson was into it, leading to signature Flying V models of both the Gibson and Epiphone variety (with a Kramer or two thrown in).
As far as the shape and vibe, there’s not much to say… it’s another (Flying) V. But as per the Gibson website, this V was “designed by metal icon Dave Mustaine,” so there must be something special about it, right? Well, let’s see… the guitar, which is specifically called the EXP Artist Model, “delivers the powerful, heavy sound, and exceptional playing performance that he demands.”
The scale length is 25.5 inches, the neck is mahogany, the fretboard is ebony, and the radius is compound. Mustaine’s EXP V features 24 medium jumbo frets, mother-of-pearl “teeth-shaped” inlays, and Grover Mini Rotomatic tuners, along with a Tune-O-Matic bridge and a Stop Bar tailpiece.
But the guitar is not without it’s cool Mustaine touches, like the Explorer-style headstock, and Mustaine’s latest signature pickups, the Thrash Factory Seymour Duncans.
Beyond that, the guitar comes in Antique natural and Silver Metallic nitro finish and generally features black hardware – a proper metal guitar for a proper metal icon.
